The Kimbrian Island Chronicles - Episode I
by chikorita18
Summary: I'll warn you now - IF YOU DON'T LIKE TRACEY, DON'T READ! Oh, whoops, summary...Um...Tracey decides that it's time he move on with his career and leave Professor Oak's lab, possibly for good...


The Kimbrian Island Chronicles  
Ep. I: A Bittersweet Departure  
  
Author: Chikorita_18  
  
Category: General  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Summary: After working with Professor Oak for about two years, Tracey finally decides that it's time to move on with his career and leave Pallet Town, possibly for good.  
  
A/N: Anything between asterisks (*) is a character thinking, anything between is a Pokémon speaking.  
  
Another A/N: This fic is COMPLETELY ABOUT TRACEY!! The whole group is in the first Episode, but after that, it's ALL TRACEY! (Oh, and a few characters that I made up on the spot) So, if you got a problem with Tracey, leave now.  
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Tracey Sketchit lay on the floor of his room, a map spread out before him. His long greenish-black hair fell across his boyish features as he ran his fingers along the red lines that represented roads. He sighed heavily, catching the attention of Marill and Venonat, who were sitting nearby, arguing about something in their own respective languages. Both Pokémon stared at their master for a moment before returning to the argument that seemed to be taking place for no other reason than something to do.  
Tracey sighed again, not for attention, but just because it was all he could think to do. He sat up, crossed his legs, and set about trying to fold the map - something that even he, an experienced traveler, had trouble doing. A quick glance at the clock told him that it was way too late to be pondering the kinds of things he was pondering and that he had better get to sleep if he was even going to try to help Professor Oak the next morning. But sleep wasn't coming easy to him lately. He was beginning to wonder if his heart was still there, working at the Lab. Sure, it had been his dream and all, but the old traveler's instincts were beginning to bug him. He needed to be out there, in the world, and that wasn't something you got working as a Pokémon researcher's assistant. The professor tried his best to help out with that, sending Tracey on occasional research missions, but it wasn't the same as sleeping under the stars...and never knowing where you were going until you picked up a map the next morning and just picked a place...and never having to worry about getting lazy, or out of shape, or fat, 'cause you were never in one place long enough to slack off.   
Tracey gave up on folding the map and just tossed it aside. *No point in folding the thing* he thought. *It's not like I'm going anywhere.* He looked at the clock yet again and climbed into bed, noting that it was kind of hot in the room that night. It was strange, the way he picked up on things that no one else picked up on, but that was just him. He was an observant person and was good at noticing things that no one else noticed. How else could he possibly have known that two of his friends, who fought like Meowths and Growlithes ("cats and dogs" - get it?) could ever possibly like each other?  
Tracey smiled as he thought of Ash and Misty. The two of them were probably still mad at him over what he had said the day they had called in to let the professor know how they were doing. He had accidentally noticed and mentioned the fact that Misty had one arm draped over Ash's shoulder, and both had blushed profoundly and promptly hung up. Tracey was still laughing about that one. The two of them were becoming so obvious, even their other friend, Brock, was beginning to pick up on it. *Oh, well,* he thought. *One day they'll finally admit it. Maybe not in this decade, but one day.*  
He felt Marill and Venonat curl up at his feet, something they'd started to do immediately after Tracey had started letting them sleep outside of their PokéBalls. Scyther just wasn't that kind of Pokémon, it preferred to sleep outside in the research area. "Good night, you guys," Tracey said to his two Pokémon.   
He was answered by mumbly Poké-voices. He laughed and finally drifted off to sleep.   
  
***  
  
"Hey, Tracey, are you up?!" a voice from downstairs brought Tracey out of dreamland. He opened one eye carefully and glanced at the clock. Seeing how late it was, he jumped out of bed and ran for the clothes he had spread out for the day the night before. "Hey, Marill, Venonat, you two, get up!"  
Marill sat up and rubbed the sleep from its eyes with one paw (is that what you call them?) and Venonat jumped out of the bed, not fully awake, and crashed to the ground, forgetting that Tracey's bed was still about two and a half feet off of the ground. Ow, it said in its respective Poké-language.  
Marill burst out laughing. I'm glad you did that! it said.   
Tracey sighed, pulling his now almost-shoulder-length hair back with his trademark headband. "Venonat, you will hurt yourself one of these days," he said, dashing out the door and downstairs to where Professor Oak was waiting for him. "Sorry, professor, I kinda slept in..." he apologized.  
The professor shook his head. "Don't worry about it, Tracey," he said. "Anyway, I have a bunch of new trainers leaving on their Pokémon journeys today, so I want you to head out to the research area and feed all the Pokémon this morning. I'll think of something for you to do later, assuming that I don't get one of those trainers who sleeps in until four o'clock in the afternoon..."  
Tracey stifled a laugh. "You're never going to let Ash off the hook for that, are you?"  
The professor cast him an amused glance. "I just found it a little funny that a boy who was so unbelievably excited about leaving on his journey slept in on the day that he was supposed to start his journey. Just don't tell him I said that."  
Tracey nodded in understanding and headed out to begin the exhausting task of feeding every single Pokémon in the research area. The first thing he noticed was that it was blistering hot outside. He noticed that most of the Bug-type Pokémon, including his Scyther and Ash's Heracross, were gathered underneath a tree to get away from the heat. Venonat made a mad dash for the tree, too, and Marill ran headlong for the pond. "Must be El Nino," he said to himself as he grabbed a pitchfork to feed the Ponyta and Rapidash. Through the corner of his eyes, he could see three young kids walking up the steps of the lab. "Must be the new trainers," he thought to himself, mildly jealous of the fact that, in about half an hour, those kids would be on the road, headed for who knew where. He found himself thinking of the map he'd been studying for about a week as he pitched hay into the Ponyta/Rapidash stalls. There was an island chain just northwest of Johto that he had always wanted to explore. They were called the Kimbrian Islands. They weren't as big and as distinguished as the Orange Islands, and not many people even knew that there was a Pokémon League there. Even though there was, it dimmed in comparison to the Indigo and Johto Leagues. But it was said that several of the islands housed Pokémon that seemed to be inherently more powerful than the same Pokémon that came from Kanto or Johto. *What Pokémon Watcher could resist that?* he thought to himself. *I just wish I didn't have to decide between staying here and working with my idol and going back to my old travelling days...and it is so darn hot out here!* The last part came as an afterthought. He put down the pitchfork long enough to strip his T-shirt off, knowing that he'd probably end up with a sunburn, but not really caring.  
A whistle in the form of a cat-call came from behind him. "Lookin' pretty good there, Trace!" a female voice called out.  
Tracey, startled and embarassed, spun around to come face-to-face with Ash, Misty, and Brock. "Oh...uh...hi," he stammered out, blushing.   
Misty laughed. "Hey, c'mon, Trace, there's nothing to be embarassed about, for crying out loud," she said.  
"I thought you guys weren't supposed to be back until next week..." Tracey said, quickly changing the subject.  
Misty shot a mock-glare at Ash. "Yeah, well, Mr. Pokémon Master here was so excited about showing off his Badges that we practically ran here."  
Ash gave her a hey-can-you-blame-me look. "Just because you don't have any..." he said.  
Misty frowned. "What is that supposed to mean?!"  
Ash shrugged. "I mean you're jealous that I got so many badges and you have none..." He took one look at the expression on Misty's face and made break for the lab. Misty followed in hot pursuit.  
Brock rolled his eyes (???) and looked at Tracey. "Your turn to put up with them," he said. "You have no idea how bad they've been lately."  
Tracey shrugged. "They're putting on a show," he said. "They don't really mean that. They're just trying to convince me that they're the same old Ash and Misty because of what I happened to see the last time you guys called."  
Brock frowned and then remembered what Tracey meant. "Oh, yeah...they really haven't been that shy about that stuff...I caught them holding hands a little while ago. You should have seen them try to come up with an excuse."  
Tracey laughed at the thought. "What excuse did they come up with?"  
"Nothing at all," Brock replied. "Ash just said something about getting to the next town before dark and ran off." He was quiet for a moment before he spoke up again. "Then again, they're probably wondering why you and I are actually getting along..." Brock and Tracey had never really been on good terms, as so often happened with so-called 'replacements', but had stayed on speaking terms for Ash and Misty's sake.  
Tracey shrugged and turned back to his work.  
  
***  
  
The whole group was gathered in Professor Oak's living room, Ash proudly recalling his Gym matches and Misty pointing out the 'stupid mistakes' he had made. Brock was flipping through Tracey's sketchpad for no apparent reason and Tracey was keeping a close eye on him.  
But while Tracey's eyes were on Brock, his mind was somewhere else. The Kimbrians. *What do I do?* he asked himself, not really expecting an answer. *I mean, working here is, like, the best thing that has ever happened to me...but...I'm a traveller by nature...I like to be out there, sleeping under the stars...I don't get that here. But if I left, I'd be alone again. Completely alone, with only my Pokémon.* He sighed to himself, not wanting the rest of the group to pick up on his train of thought. *So...to stay or to go...that's the big choice. If I stay, this'll bug me for the rest of my life...if I go, it'll mean saying goodbye to everyone here...but there's no saying that I couldn't come back, right? I mean, the Kimbrian Islands are pretty small...it wouldn't take that long, maybe a couple of years or so...what to do, what to do...*  
Finally, he came to a decision. He was going to travel to the Kimbrian Islands. He'd be back, after all. Nothing was forever.   
"Hey, Trace, whatcha thinking about?" Ash said, taking a momentary break from his tales of glory.  
Tracey snapped back to reality. "I'm thinking that it's time for me to move on," he said.  
That silenced the group fairly efficiently. "What?" Professor Oak said.  
Tracey bit his lip. He suddenly wanted to cry. "I think it's time that I go back to my career. I mean, it's been great, working here and all, after all, it was my dream, but the old traveling instincts are trying to kick in, ya know?"  
"Trace...I thought you were perfectly happy here," Misty said.  
"I am, but...there's just a point where even I have to move on."  
"Where are you planning on going?" Professor Oak said, a hint of sadness in his voice.  
Tracey looked down at his feet to get away from everyone's stunned expressions. "I've been thinking about the Kimbrian Islands," he said. "They're about the only island chain that I haven't explored yet and it's really bugging me..."  
"Well, if that's your decision, Tracey, I don't see any reason to stop you from going," the professor said.  
"Are you sure?" Tracey asked, certain that there was more to it. "You're not mad or anything?"  
Professor Oak shook his head. "Not at all, Tracey," he said. "You deserve to do what you feel is right for you and your career. I didn't think that you would plan on staying here for the rest of your life."  
Tracey nodded and looked over at Ash, Misty, and Brock. "What do you guys think?" he asked.  
Misty already had tears in her eyes. "That would mean that we wouldn't see you again for a long time," she said. "But if it's what you wanna do...then I guess you deserve our well-wishes."  
Ash nodded in agreement. "I guess I should have expected you to want to leave sooner or later," he said, then changed his mind. "Nah, never mind that, I never expected you to leave at all. You were so happy here...but, like Misty and the professor already said, if it's what you wanna do..."  
Brock sighed heavily. "Well, Trace, I'll be honest with you," he said. "I really don't know you that well to make a decision on this."  
Tracey shrugged. "That's all right," he said.   
"So when are you planning on leaving?" Professor Oak asked him.  
Tracey shrugged. "Maybe the middle of next week," he said. "I've been thinking about this for a long time and I want to get out there as soon as I can."  
The professor nodded. "Well, I guess I'd better lay off your workload for this next week so you can get everything done that you need to before you leave."  
"And don't think you're leaving without some kind of farewell party!" Misty piped up.  
Tracey shook his head. "I know you mean well, Misty, but...a party would just make me change my mind...I'd appreciate it if you guys didn't do that. I'm sorry."  
Misty nodded. "We understand, Trace. No problem."  
  
***  
  
Professor Oak poked his head into Tracey's room. "Are you ready to go, Tracey?" he asked. "I'm going to drive you to the port, okay?"  
Tracey nodded and finished packing stuff into his big orange backpack. He felt his stomach turning and his hands were shaking at the prospect of being out on his own again. He slung it over one shoulder and followed the professor to his car.  
"Tracey, I just want to let you know that it's been a pleasure working with you these last couple of years," the professor said, sadness in his voice. "And it's not going to be the same in the lab without you."  
"It's been a pleasure working with you, too," Tracey said.   
"I just want you to be careful out there, okay?"  
"All right."  
"We're all going to miss you here. You've been a good friend to all of us."  
Tracey was surprised to see a group gathered at the entrance to the harbour house. Looking closer, he saw Ash, Misty, Brock, and Delia, Ash's mother, gathered together. "What are you doing here?" he asked, climbing out of the car.   
Delia stepped forward. "You wouldn't let us throw you a farewell party, so the least we could do is show up here to say goodbye!"  
Tracey smiled. Delia had a good heart and could never stand to see someone go without making a big deal out of it.  
Misty stepped up to him. "You've really been a good friend," she said. "And I think we're all going to miss you, but...I'm happy for you, going out to get what you want." She gave him a sarcastic glance. "But I ain't going to miss your quips about me and Ash liking each other."  
Tracey grinned. "Nah, Brock's gonna take over for me," he said.  
Misty made a face.  
Ash sighed heavily. "I hate goodbyes," he said. "I just wish you'd let us come with you...but if you want to go at it alone, then that's your choice. So...good luck." He lowered his voice so only Tracey could hear him. "And if you come back to visit in a year, I'll ask Misty out on a date. Deal?"  
Tracey tried not to burst out laughing. "You got it, kid," he said. "I'm holding you to that deal."  
Ash shrugged. "Well, it's not like you'd ever drop it."  
Tracey grinned. "I don't think you'd ask her out just to get me...and Brock...off your back, Ash. I think you like her."  
"Ash, what are you saying to him?" Misty said. "You'd better not be dissing me, Ketchum!"  
Ash raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, I do," he said. "Just not when she's like that." He raised his voice back to a normal conversational level. "Anyway, I'll see you again, right?"  
Tracey nodded. "Yeah, you will. Don't worry."  
Delia dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. "You take care of yourself, okay, Tracey?" she said. "I don't want you to get hurt or anything."  
Tracey smiled and accepted a hug from her. He heard the boat's whistle blow. "Well, I guess this is it," he said. "I'll be back soon."  
Brock stopped him. "I'd be beating myself up if I didn't say this...but...I'm sorry if I ever made you feel like you didn't matter to any of us. Maybe when you get back, you and I can get to know each other a little better..." He offered a hand.  
Tracey accepted the offer. "I'll take you up on that," he said. With that, he turned and walked through the doors of the harbour house and dashed for the boat. As he stood at the rail and watched his friends disappear astern as the boat made it's way out to sea, he felt his eyes burning with yet-unshed tears. He'd miss them all, and he'd miss them terribly. But, like he reminded himself so many times, nothing was forever. He'd see them again.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED  
  
Next: "Old Friends Reunited" - Arriving at the first of the Kimbrian Islands, Tracey feels a bit lost. But an old friend from his childhood is waiting for him. But the celebration is put on hold with the debut of two new villians....  
  
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A/N: All Tracey, all the time! Ha ha ha ha! Oh, well, I dunno why I'm writing this, but I am, so if you got a problem, who cares?! (Just kidding) This is just something that I'm working on to try and get the muses to help me with the AAML Chronicles. And did ya notice that I managed to put in a few AAML hinties in here? Yep, I'm not leaving that arena. Oh, well, I'll catch y'all later, eh?  
Oh, yeah, and all the names of the Kimbrian Islands are combinations of names of towns and cities around the area where I live. Cool, eh?  
  



End file.
